30.7.13

Roberto Chery

Scholars of postwar football will tell you that Brazil adopted the colour yellow in 1954.We, of course, do not go beyond 1937. During the early years of the Seleção the kit was generally white with blue as a change colour (in 1917 kits of both plain red andyellow and green stripes were briefly used).There is, however, a game from our era in which Brazil wore yellow- or to be more precise the gold and black of Penarol.More remarkable, perhaps, is the fact that Brazil's opponents that day were Argentina, who in place of their familiar albiceleste wore the celestial blue of their neighbours and rivals Uruguay.The scene was Estádio das Laranjeiras, Rio de Janeiro, June 1st 1919. A crowd of 17,500 watched the match between the recently crowned South American champions and their guests Argentina. Nominally at stake was the Copa Roberto Chery, but in fact the friendly match was a fundraiser.On May 30th 23 year old Roberto Chery had died of peritonitis in a Rio hospital. Chery had been in the hospital to undergo an emergency operation on a strangulated hernia that he had sustained whilst playing for Uruguay against Chike in a South American championship match at Estádio Laranjeiras on May 17th.Penarol goalkeeper Chery had travelled to Brazil as an understudy to the veteran Cayetano Saporiti. 32 year old Saporiti had played 48 internationals by the time Chery was given his debut- and would go on to represent Uruguay 51 times in total. Chery, known as Poeta on account of his passion for poetry, was touted as Saporiti's long term replacement. Tragically Chery's first international would also be his last.The temporary Aurinegros and Celestes shared 6 goals in the match, and the Copa Chery was presented to Penarol.